Must Have Digital Tools for Architects to Test Building Performance

Are you looking for some of the best digital tools for architects? If yes, then you have stumbled upon the right page. Here I am going to share a list of some of the must-have digital tools for architects to test building performance.

Working as an architect is not an easy job. They always have to focus on determining the purpose and requirements of the structures. If they can use a simulation tool to predict a building’s performance before the beginning of the project, they can optimize their plan to make a significant difference in the results. 

Such digital tools can give you real-time feedback, comparisons between the best-suited design according to the concept, and let you make specific changes.

 After all, it is easy to make changes before creating the structure.

Below, I have discussed such tools, so here we go-

Green Building Studio

Green Building Studio is a cloud-based tool that is designed by AutoDesk. It is a part of their Energy Analysis Tool that can be easily paired up with any modeling software that supports gbXML exports. It is a handy tool that could help you with the modeling inspection, geometry conversions, evident guidance, and proper LEED support. The tool comes with a bunch of pre-built templates of designs that can help you by saving your time. It also features a side-by-side comparison function so that you can make a wise decision accordingly.

The tool uses a cloud-based service with a DOE-2.2 analysis the engine that quickly connects with the Autodesk tool and provides a detailed analysis. 

GBS is well designed to help you calculate the average energy consumption, annual carbon emission, impactful energy efficiency measures, and a tight consolidation. However, you have to give a thorough description of the building’s design and mechanical system to get the best performance. You can skip giving such a detailed report and let GBS make the assumption, but that could make a difference in the results.

Vabi Apps

The next tool in our list is a suite of apps developed by Vabi Software. This tool can help you calculate and visualize the project’s financial, environmental, and programmatical performance. The suite is quite popular in its native country, Holland, with over 80% of their country’s building performance tool market. They feature a tool named Thermal Comfort Optimizer lets you calculate the heating and cooling points for different rooms of a building. Another tool called The Energy Accessor let you know the estimated consumption and cost of your project’s monthly and yearly energy usage.

You can easily pair up this tool with AutoDesk Revit for better performance and functionality. 

The building performance dashboard of the tool is pretty clean and well optimized. You will get a sort of important information categorized in multiple sections, and you can easily see an overall score of your project’s design and concept. Throughout their journey, they have tried a bunch of dashboard layout, but the current one seems just perfect. 

The pricing of the tool is relatively very cheap if we compare it with other tools in the market. Also, the flexible subscription option makes it the perfect choice as a third-party add-on for AutoDesk.

ArchiCAD

ArchiCAD is one of the most popular and top-rated BIM the package that gives you the capability to create 2D and BIM 3D modeling and rendering.

It is basically a building design suite that is packed with tons of excellent tools that are specially designed for architects and designers. ArchiCAD boasts one of the biggest userbases in the architectural industry, with approximately 1,50,000+ active users. This product can be easily used in any PC that could handle 2D and 3D designing.

This ArchiCAD tool is available for both Windows and Mac platforms so that you don’t have to worry about the compatibility of the software. This tool supports an extensive collection of add-ons and extensions that can enhance the overall functionality of the tool. It features a bunch of functions that could help you with testing the performance of your project. You can find details like average energy consumption, model inspection, and annual carbon emission. ArchiCAD also features a 30-day trial, so if you are planning to buy such a tool, then I will highly recommend you to give it a try.

OpenStudio

OpenStudio is free to use, an open-source project created by National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The tool can only be paired up with Trimble SketchUp, which is the only downside of the tool. The tool features a visually appealing, user-friendly UI. The EnergyPlus engine is a console-based program that can read and write text files only. It can help you define material properties, average energy consumption, suggestions, and a bunch of other essential details.

OpenStudio can run multiple simulations according to your design to let you test various configurations, life-cycle costs, and a bunch of other relevant information. Since it is an open-source tool, you won’t get customer support and detailed documentation. But you can get a bunch of online articles to understand the tool easily. The data you get from the analysis is very comprehensive, and the quick compare option can be handy to compare multiple designs.

Closing Comments

There you have it – the list of best digital tools that can help architects to test building performance.

All the tools mentioned in the list are prevalent among the users and have good ratings. They can be used to comprehend details such as expected energy consumption, model inspection, and other performance-related stuff. 

You can easily use these tools to calculate building performance to get instant feedback about your designs.